


Summer Exchange. Harry and Daphne

by LadyMimiAliceDeYorke



Series: Summer Exchange [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-14
Updated: 2018-06-05
Packaged: 2018-09-08 13:30:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 15,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8846923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyMimiAliceDeYorke/pseuds/LadyMimiAliceDeYorke
Summary: You've heard the phrase, 'Walk a mile in their shoes.' Well how about living in them? For 36 days over the summer of 5th year, that's exactly what two students will be doing. Join Harry and Daphne as they experience the ups and downs of each others home lives, but will their time with each other affect them for better or for worse?





	1. Chapter 1

“Quiet, quiet!” McGonagall called out to the packed common room where the current fifth and sixth years were waiting patiently for their Head of House to make her announcement, every single student wondering exactly what it could be. “Now, thanks to the efforts of certain people,” she started looking over at Harry, who bowed his head in embarrassment, while the sound of faint clapping travelled down from the dorm rooms, “The Headmaster has decided, in his infinite wisdom, to introduce a summer exchange program,” she told the gathered teenagers, pausing as excited chatter broke out at her words.

“Who are we exchanging with?” “How long do we have to stay for?” “Do we have to do this?” “Can we swap partners?” “Has he lost his mind?” “Why is he doing this now?”

All this was asked in quick succession, much to the annoyance of McGonagall who quickly called everyone back to attention. “Quiet! You will be randomly paired with another student from your year; they will not be from the same house. You will stay with your partner for eighteen days, with a week at your own home, before being joined by your partner for another eighteen days. No, you will not be able to exchange partners with anyone else, this program is designed to encourage more acceptance between you and your fellow classmates, this isn’t going to be achieved by staying at your friends homes over the summer,” McGonagall explained to everyone. “You will receive a letter with the name, address and a temporary two-way portkey, although if you would prefer to use the Knight Bus, the school has set up an account to enable this. Your exchange starts one week after term ends,” she told them before turning and exiting the Gryffindor Tower, leaving the intrigued students to talk amongst themselves’ about what was sure to be their most interesting summer yet.

“Bloody hell,” Ron said as he looked between his two best friends. “Dumbledore’s gone barmy,” he told them shaking his head.

“I think it’s a brilliant idea,” Hermione said with a smile. “It’ll be a fantastic opportunity to experience different cultures ad learn more about wizarding traditions,” she pointed out, her mind already swimming with possibilities.

“Yeah it’ll definitely be an experience,” Harry remarked, silently dreading the idea of sharing his home life with a complete stranger. He just hoped he’d get someone understanding, although knowing his luck, it seemed unlikely.

**

Harry sat on his small bed, in his even smaller bedroom, his hands clutching at the letter that had just arrived, informing him who it was he would be exchanging homes with for the summer.

Daphne Greengrass.

He recognised the name, even if she was in Slytherin, he’d had enough lessons with the snakes to be able to know every name in the House of Serpents, or at least the one’s in his year. Beyond the fact she seemed to be proud but reserved (as reserved as a Slytherin could be) he didn’t really know anything about his summer partner. Sighing in resignation, Harry made his way downstairs to break the bad news to the Dursley’s. He hoped they wouldn’t overreact too much.

He was wrong.

“I am NOT having another _FREAK_ come into my house for a month!” Vernon yelled once Harry broke the news.

“It’s for eighteen days, not a month,” Harry told him when the older man took a breath between yelling. “And I don’t have a choice. One person comes here for eighteen days and then a week later I leave to stay at their house,” he explained to his uncle. “Daphne arrives here next week,” he added.

“’Daphne?’ It’s a girl? They’ll be no hanky-panky in this house boy!” Vernon warned Harry, shoving him the chest with his fat finger. “And you mark my words boy; she’ll be working for her food and her bed just like you!” he warned the younger boy before walking away, “I’m never going to get these _freaks_ out of my life!” he muttered to himself as he turned back to the television, effectively dismissing Harry, who turned and left for the kitchen to start making dinner for the Dursley’s, mentally trying to factor in where Daphne would fit into life at number 4 Privet Drive.

**

Daphne looked down at the name written on her letter and couldn’t help but feel victorious about how jealous her housemates would be once they found out who her summer exchange partner was.

None other than Harry Potter.

“You look happy?” Astoria remarked from when she stood in the door to her sister’s room, a curious look on her young face as she looked over at her older sister. “So who did you get?” she asked moving further into the room.

“Harry Potter,” Daphne said, her tone one of indifference concealing how happy she was. “Should be interesting to see how the ‘boy-wonder’ lives outside school,” she remarked setting her letter aside as she looked over at her sister.

“You can drop the act Daphne, I know you’re happy with your partner,” Astoria told her with a smile. “It’ll probably be interesting. I overheard his friends talking at the beginning of the year about how bad he looked when school started up again,” she revealed to Daphne, causing the older girl to frown somewhat. “Your stay should be a real eye-opener,” she pointed out before turning and walking out the room. “Don’t forget to tell mother and father who’s staying with us,” she added before she left Daphne to her thoughts.

 _What if he’s not the Golden Boy that Draco always claims him to be?_ Daphne thought as she picked up her letter again; quietly palming the small portkey that would in five days’ time, transport her to someplace called Privet Drive, where Merlin knows what would greet her. _As long as they don’t expect me to clean I’ll be fine,_ she thought to herself before she left her room in search of her parents, letter in hand ready to reveal just who would be staying with the small family in a months’ time.     


	2. Chapter Two

Knowing they wouldn’t receive a warm welcome upon their arrival, Harry smiled apologetically to Daphne before knocking on the door to 4 Privet Drive, confusing Daphne somewhat. Harry could see her frowning out the corner of his eye, most likely wondering why he was knocking on the door to his own home. _This should be interesting,_ he thought to himself as Petunia opened the door with a slight sneer. “Get inside,” she hissed, holding the door open only slightly wide enough to allow them both entrance. “Vernon will be home in an hour and dinner had better be ready, get to work,” she told them, slamming the small door closed and walking into the living room.

“Actually could you tell me where I’d be sleeping? I’d like to rest and freshen up before dinner,” Daphne said with a small, somewhat polite smile in Petunia’s direction.

Petunia looked the younger girl up and down before raising her head slightly, looking down her nose at the now slightly wider eyed Daphne, “Get cooking girlie. You’re not staying in a hotel, you’re lucky to be sleeping here at all,” she told her before turning on her heel and leaving the two teens alone in the hallway.

“Come on,” Harry said leading Daphne into the kitchen. “Let me just get started on the dinner and then I’ll show you where you’ll be sleeping,” he told her, deliberately leaving out that they would be sharing the small room that was his.

“Your aunt appears to be a delightful woman,” Daphne remarked leaning against the counter as she watched Harry quickly make a start on dinner. “Is she always that polite or have I merely caught her on a good day?” she asked.

“No, she’s always like that. Uncle Vernon will be worse though I’m afraid. Dudley isn’t that bad anymore, but you’re still unlikely to be warmly welcomed or treated while you’re here,” Harry warned her with a small smile as he shut the oven door. “Right, I’ll show you where you’ll be sleeping,” he told her leading her upstairs, grabbing hold of Daphne’s bag on the way. “I’m sorry but the house isn’t very big, I’m afraid we’ll be sharing,” he explained to her as he opened the door to the smallest bedroom of Privet Drive and standing back to let her see exactly where they would be staying for the next three weeks.

“There’s one bed,” Daphne remarked after quickly looking around the miniscule room, taking note of the broken wardrobe, the night table propped up with old class books and the small single bed pushed into the far corner.

“I know there is,” Harry muttered, obviously uncomfortable that they would be sharing such a small confined space for the coming weeks. “I’ll make up a bed on the floor and you can have the bed. I’m afraid that it’s not the most comfortable,” he told her with an apologetic smile. “The bathroom is just across the hall. I’ll leave you to get settled, I’ll be downstairs,” he told her before leaving her alone in the small bedroom.

Once she was alone, Daphne sat down on the small bed and looked around the room, trying to think of any reasons she could give to the professors back at Hogwarts as to why she shouldn’t have to stay in what was already turning out to be a horrible little house, with horrible people. And she hadn’t even met all of them yet.

* * *

When she finally joined Harry downstairs, dinner was ready and on the table, where she got her first glimpse of Harry’s uncle and cousin and she was shocked by the vast differences between the small family. While Harry and his aunt were thin and somewhat scrawny, his uncle and cousin were grossly overweight. Daphne was surprised the chairs they were sitting on didn’t collapse under the pressure of holding up such weight.

When Harry and Daphne both sat down at the table, the largest man Daphne had ever seen turned his beady, sweaty eyes on the two teens. “So you’re the other freak I have to have in my home,” he said with a sneer worthy of a Malfoy she thought.

“This is Daphne Greengrass. This is my Uncle Vernon and my cousin Dudley,” Harry introduced them, letting out a small sigh of relief when Dudley politely nodded towards his classmate, rather than just stare at the pretty blonde next to him.

“It’s nice to meet you. Thank you, for letting me stay in your home,” Daphne said with a polite smile. “I’m sorry if my being here cause any inconvenience.”

“Oh it’s a huge inconvenience having you here missy,” Vernon told her loudly. “It’s bad enough we’ve got this freak still here and now we’ve got _you_. But believe you me; you will be working for the roof over your head and the food on your plate, just like the boy here,” he warned her before he started shovelling food into his mouth.

“Excuse me? I’m your guest, not your servant,” Daphne told him, her voice slightly raised in panic. This was not what she was expecting for this summer exchange.

“You either work or you sleep outside. There’ll be no freaky magic taking place in my house girl and you will be working for your keep. Not as if were getting any money to have you, we might as well get something out of it. You’ll help Potter with the cooking and do the washing and cleaning,” Vernon told her before once again leaving her looking dumbstruck as he went back to shovelling food into his mouth.

When dinner was finally over and Harry had finished washing up – with little help from Daphne – the two teens retired to the small bedroom where Harry left Daphne to get changed before they both got into their beds, the two lying on their backs, staring up at the ceiling as they contemplated just what the next three weeks would entail. “Was your uncle serious about what he said at dinner? Am I really going to be a glorified house-elf for the next three weeks?” she asked him.

“Unfortunately. I’m sorry about him by the way. I would say that he’s not always like that but he is, you quickly get used to it. He’ll be at work most of the time anyway and Aunt Petunia usually keeps out of the way when we’re doing chores. It’ll fly by,” Harry told her apologetically.

“I’m not being a house-elf for half of my summer Harry,” she told him angrily. “I did not sign up for this.”

“None of us signed up for it Daphne. But you have to work with the cards life deals you,” Harry told her. Rolling over so he was facing away from her he told quietly, “You don’t have to do any chores Daphne. I can manage them all anyway. I’ve had years of practice,” he added quietly, causing Daphne to frown into the dark, wondering if this was what Harry’s life was really like?     


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Sighing in frustration, Daphne threw the sponge into the bucket of warm soapy water as she glared out over the Durley’s patio. She had been outside working under the bight June sun for the last two hours and she had finally finished, although she would have finished much sooner if Petunia Dursley didn’t keep moving in and out the house, trailing dust and dirt over the clean slates, much to Daphne’s annoyance.

Moving back into the kitchen Daphne poured the dirty water away and tidied up her cleaning materials before making her way upstairs, hoping she could collapse on the small bed in the spare room for a couple of peaceful minutes. When she reached the bedroom though it was clear that Harry had had a similar idea and was currently laying on the bed staring up at the ceiling. “I see you had the same idea,” Daphne remarked sitting down at the end of the small bed and leaning against the wall. “What have you been doing all day? I’ve hardly seen you,” she asked him.

“I was up in the loft cleaning” Harry told her, keeping his eyes closed but moving his feet up so that Daphne had more space to sit. “Did you finish in the garden?” he asked her.

“Yes, eventually. Would have been much easier and quicker if you aunt hadn’t kept walking in and out the house though,” she told him, the tone of her voice revealing her obvious displeasure in the situation.

“Yeah, she does that,” Harry muttered sitting up in the bed. “At least uncle Vernon was at work today, otherwise he’d be outside glaring at you all day.”

“Thank Merlin for small mercies,” Daphne muttered. “Do I have to do anything after dinner, or can I actually relax for a part of my holiday?” she asked him.

“I told you the first night here that you didn’t have to do any chores, you could just stay up here all day, I highly doubt my aunt or uncle will come in and disturb you,” Harry pointed out. “I’m going to go and make dinner,” he told her with a smile before leaving Daphne alone in the room.

“Great, trapped inside a small room, in a small house with a small walrus of a man. Exactly how I wanted to spend my summer holiday,” she said to the empty room, throwing herself beck on the bed in frustration.

The long summer days continued in a similar manner to how they started for Daphne and Harry. Harry would awaken before dawn and start work in the kitchen, cleaning and cooking for the Dursley’s and when Daphne would eventually roll out of bed hours later, she was quickly snapped up by Petunia who always seemed to have long, boring jobs for her to do, whether it was clearing out the wardrobes upstairs, or tidying Dudley’s room day after day and after one week Daphne had had enough.

“I am not doing this all summer Potter!” Daphne told him in a harsh whisper one night as they both lay in their beds.

“You’re only here for three weeks Greengrass, _you_ don’t have to do it _all_ summer,” Harry snapped back, obviously having finally lost his patience with his classmate.

“I did not sign up to be a bloody house-elf!”

“None of us signed up to this! The idea is to see how other people live when they’re not at Hogwarts. This is how I live, and it has been since I was dumped on their doorstep at a year old when my parents were killed. We’ve not thought, ‘oh, we’re getting a posh pureblood in our house for three weeks, let’s put her to work and make her life miserable, won’t that be fun!’ We don’t all have the luxury of having had easy lives,” Harry told her, standing and gathering his pillows and blankets. “Just stay up here for the rest of your time here if you’re finding it so hard,” he told her as he headed for the door. “Not as if you’re doing much anyway,” he added with a mutter as he closed the door behind, leaving Daphne lying in bed in shock while he went downstairs to sleep on the sofa, obviously having had enough of her temper-tantrums for one night.

* * *

Three nights later Daphne took extra care to sneak down the stairs of Privet Drive in order to get into the kitchen undisturbed. She had stopped helping Harry with chores after their late night argument and her body still ached like it never had before even after so many days’ rest. She had just reached the hall way when loud, angry voices from the living room caught her attention.

“That fool has gone too far this time,” she heard Vernon say. “It’s bad enough that we’re stuck with you still, now we’ve got another _freak_ in the house! And this one’s now refusing to do anything!” he shouted angrily.

“I’m sure Dumbledore has his reasons,” Harry said quietly, as though speaking any louder would cause Vernon to lose it completely.

“I’m not going to let your freakishness take over my house boy! And she may not be doing any work, but believe you me; you’ll be doing double, triple work while you’re both still here to make up for boy!” Vernon shouted at Harry.

“It’s just another week and half and then she’ll be gone,” Harry told his uncle, the tone of his voice suggesting that he would be as equally as happy as his uncle to see the back of their blonde houseguest.

“It’s bad enough we’ve had to feed you; cloth you and put a roof over your head for the last fifteen years, now we have to keep another one of your freakish people too. We’re not running a bloody hotel boy! Should have just dumped you somewhere else when you arrived. Would have saved us a lot of money and time!” Vernon sneered at Harry.

At the sound of someone moving around in the living room, Daphne quickly turned and made her way back up the stairs, not wanting to be caught eavesdropping. When she finally reached the small bedroom Daphne paused in the doorway and really took in everything she had seen and heard over the last week and a half.

The room the two teens were sleeping in was miniscule, barely any bigger than the bathroom. The mattress she had been sleeping on was lumpy and old, the duvet and pillow threadbare and uneven. As though it had been used so much and for so long that the filling inside had been permanently displaced. The wardrobe in the corner of the room was overflowing with oversized clothes and one door was hanging on by just one hinge. Even the newest looking piece of furniture – the bedside table – was propped up with old school textbooks, having only three of its four legs. And she was absolutely certain that there was mould growing at the top of the walls. Overall it was a miserable place to stay in. To be forced to stay in.

Despite how miserable her surroundings were, she could see that Harry had attempted to make it somewhat more homely. He had a hand drawn picture of his owl tapped to the wardrobe door; his walls had his house flags pinned to them as well as the odd Quidditch poster. And then there were the photos.

There were only two; both on Harry’s nightstand, both in cheap, plain frames, but Daphne knew they both meant the world to Harry, especially when taken into account how much he looked at them on a night before he fell asleep. The first was of the ‘Golden Trio’, the three best friends sat on the sofa in what must be the Gryffindor common room when they were first years. They were all smiling and waving up at the camera, all of them looking like they didn’t have a single care or worry in the world. Exactly how children should look.

The second was of Harry’s parents, or at least that’s what Daphne assumed. The couple were smiling and dancing in front of a fountain, smiling up at the camera every so often, but it was the way they looked at each other that told her they were very much in love with one another. It was this photo that Harry held every night; stared at every night. Stroked every night, as though he could reach inside the frame and actually touch his parents.

After hearing what his uncle had said to him tonight and after watching him day after day toll away for his horrid relatives and receiving nothing but more abuse in return, Daphne began to feel sick over how she had reacted to his life here. He was right, the whole idea of living with their classmates was to see how other people lived, and she had come here and done little work and complained about what she had done. All the while Harry had been working extra hard to compensate for her stubbornness and laziness.

Coming to the realisation that she had been somewhat of a bitch over the last week and a half, Daphne resolved to help out more and to just be better during her remaining time there.                


	4. Chapter Four

Chapter Four.

It was a warm, sunny day when Harry and Daphne were left alone while the Dursley’s visited Aunt Marge. Having quickly finished their chores (Daphne doing more than her fair share) the two teens locked up the house and spent the remainder of the afternoon in the local park. It was while the two sat in the shade of a tree eating ice-cream when Daphne finally turned to Harry and asked what she’d been wondering from the moment she arrived.

“Do they know who you are?” she asked him.

“No, they don’t know. Even if they did, they wouldn’t understand,” Harry said with a shrug.

“Maybe if you told them then they’d stop treating you like a house-elf,” Daphne suggested to him.

“Because it wouldn’t make a blind bit of difference” he told her knowingly. “Dumbledore got some friends to talk to them after my godfather died, didn’t result in anything,” he informed her. “Oh, actually, it stopped the last bits of violence they used to show me. Other than that, I’ve always been treated the same way,” he added.

“Doesn’t it bother you?” Daphne asked him. “You’re our world’s saviour, surely you should be living the life of luxury” she pointed out.

“Maybe I would have if my parents or godfather had lived, but they didn’t and you have to play with the cads you’re dealt with,” Harry told her with a shrug. The two sat in silence, both thinking over what was said. “You know I used to sneak over here after school,” Harry revealed as he looked up at the clouds rolling by above them. “Only managed to stay here for about ten minutes before I had to head home, but I always loved those ten minutes, of being just a normal child. It made all the other times seem more manageable,” he revealed, his eyes closing as he remembered the better parts of his childhood.

“I’ve never been at the park before,” Daphne revealed.

“What? Why?” Harry asked shocked.

Daphne shrugged. “There aren’t any public parks like this in the wizarding world and I doubt my parents would blend in well in a place like this,” she said indicating to the handful of mothers and their over laden prams and pushchairs dotted around the park.

“I guess, but there are some eccentric people in the muggle world too, you never know, they could have visited a park and blended right in,” Harry said with smile before standing up and offering his hand to help Daphne up. “We better head back or there will be hell to pay when the Dursley’s get back to find that we’re not there,” he told her as they made there was back to the house.

“Why? I would have thought they’d be thrilled not to have ‘freaks’ in their house anymore,” Daphne pointed out as they rounded onto Privet Drive.

“Maybe, but once they realise they’ll have to do their own cooking and cleaning they’d probably miss us,” Harry pointed out, smiling at the thought of his aunt and uncle getting dirty doing chores.

“Maybe it’ll do them some good,” she said deadpanned as they entered the house, much to the amusement of Harry, who spent the rest of the night with the amusing image of Vernon Dursley wearing an apron and cleaning the bathroom.

* * *

 

It was late in the night when Harry finally made it to bed that night, exhausted after spending the entire day clearing and cleaning out the Dursley’s garage, he was ready to collapse on his make-shift bed and sleep for days. But when he finally entered the room, somewhat bleary eyed, he was surprised to find himself falling onto his empty bed as Daphne sat up in discomfort, clutching at the foot that Harry had stepped on. “What are you doing on the floor Daphne?” he asked looking down at his roommate.

“I was sleeping,” Daphne remarked as she rubbed her ankle. “Why are you coming in so late?” she asked.

“I had to finish with the garage,” Harry told her. “Why are you on the floor?” he asked her again.

“It’s your bed,” she pointed out to him as though he didn’t already know that fact.

“I know. But when you arrived I told you that I would take the floor and you could take the bed, remember?” he reminded her.

“Well it was so uncomfortable and was starting to hurt my back, I need to sleep on the hard floor for a while before my back gets too bad,” she told him, her tone not nearly as disparaging as her words suggested. “Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to go back to sleep. Sorting out all your aunts beige clothes made me really tired,” she told him before rolling back over, leaving a confused Harry looking down at her.

“Right,” Harry said with a shrug before settling down in bed, sleep claiming him as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Daphne continued to sleep on the floor, going to bed much earlier than Harry, ensuring that he would take the bed every night, much to his annoyance. Finally one night, after hearing Daphne toss and turn on the uncomfortable floor, Harry sighed, sitting up in bed just as Daphne turned over once again to face him. “Get in the bed Daphne,” he told her.

“What?” Daphne asked sitting up and looking over at the other boy.

“Get in the bed,” he told her again. “The floor is horrible to sleep on. Not that you’re actually getting any sleep from the sound of it. The bed might not be very big or the most comfortable, but it’s better than the floor. So grab the blanket and get up here,” he told her, moving against the wall to make enough room for Daphne.

Standing up with a sigh and slight groan Daphne grabbed the blankets from the floor and slid into the bed next to Harry, the two teens lying on their backs, staring up at the ceiling as they contemplated just how weird the situation was. When they both started this summer exchange, neither one thought for one minute that they would end up sleeping next to each other, and they both highly doubted that this is what Dumbledore meant when he decided he wanted to encourage understanding and acceptance between the students.


	5. Chapter Five

Wiping her hands on the tea towel after finishing the dishes, Daphne looked up out and out the kitchen window to see Harry fall backwards after what must have been a terrible struggle with a weed, making Daphne giggle slightly at the sight. It had been two weeks since Daphne had arrived at Privet Drive and three days since she’d started sleeping in the same bed as Harry. It no longer felt as strange as it did to begin with, but the first moments before exhaustion claimed them still felt somewhat awkward. Deciding it was finally time to get to know her classmate better; Daphne grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge and headed outside to join Harry in the war July sunshine. “Ready for a break?” she asked holding out one of the bottles for Harry.

“Yeah, thank you,” Harry said taking the bottle.

When she was settled down on the grass opposite Harry, Daphne looked over at her classmate and decided to just get straight to the point. “Remember when we were in the park, what you mentioned there?” she asked hoping she wasn’t over-stepping the mark.

“Yeah, I remember,” Harry said curious as to why she was bringing it up.

“I was just wondering why no one ever came and got you out of here? Surely people saw what they were doing to you?” she asked.

“It just wasn’t as closely monitored back then as it is today. They never did anything in public; they never took me with them. The neighbours never saw anything, the teachers never noticed,” Harry told her with a shrug as though it wasn’t a big deal.

“But what about Dumbledore? He dropped you off didn’t he? Didn’t he ever check up on you?” she asked him.

“Not that I can remember,” Harry told replied. “Why the sudden interest anyway?”

“I don’t know anything about you. Kind of figured I should know more about the boy I’m sharing a bed with,” she said with an amused smirk.

“Fair point,” Harry said with a laugh. “What do you want to know?” he asked.

“I don’t know. Who’s your favourite quidditch team?” she asked.

“Seriously?” he said surprised that she would want to know something to mundane. When she nodded however he shrugged and told her, “Well if you mention this to Ron I’ll deny everything, but it’s Puddlemere. You a Harpies fan I take it.”

“Er, no. Arrows, because obviously the blue makes my eyes pop,” she said with a laugh, obviously joking.

“Of course,” Harry relied with a chuckled, for the first time really taking notice of the other girls’ eyes. _Wow, they really are bright blue,_ he thought to himself, before looking away. “So I take it then that your favourite colour is blue then?”

“Yeah, but not Arrows blue. More like the blue of the sky just on the cusp of sunrise,” she said with a smile. “What about you?”

“Green. Spring green to be exact, like newly bloomed leaves on trees. Spring was always my favourite time of year,” Harry informed her with a shy smile. “What’s your favourite food?”   

“Ooo, okay that would probably be apple pie. My grandmother made the best apple pie,” Daphne told him with a smile.

“Your grandmother actually made it herself?” Harry asked, his brow raised in doubt. 

“Yes, my grandmother made it herself, no need to look so shocked,” Daphne told him. “Go on, what’s your favourite food?”

“Treacle tart,” he answered right off the bat. “Favourite subject at school?”

“Charms. What about yours?”

“Defence. Although I don’t really know if it’s because I’m just naturally good at it, or if it’s because it’s kept me alive for the last couple of years,” he said with a laugh making Daphne giggle lightly. 

“Okay, I’ve got a question for you. But, feel free not answer if it’s too personal. Have you ever used who you are to your advantage? Like getting a date or something?” she asked, curious.

Harry couldn’t help but laugh. “Oh Merlin no! For the yule ball I didn’t get a date until about a week before it was meant to take place. And any date I’ve been on has ended in disaster,” Harry told her, before frowning thoughtfully. “I’ve had the Minister of Magic pay for school supplies and a room in the Leaky Cauldron for me though,” he told her, shrugging as though it were not big deal making her laugh.

“That is so much better than using your name to get a date,” she told him smiling before looking down at her lap, frowning. “You know I used to feel sorry for you”

“Why?”

“I don’t really know. I always figured that your life must be pretty lonely, never knowing if people wanted to be with you because of your name or for who you actually were. After everything you’d been through, it didn’t seem fair,” she told him, awkwardly playing with the bottle in her hands as she avoided looking at the man sat opposite her.

“I guess it just means I have to be selective then. Choose my friends wisely,” he said with a smile, tapping the cap of his water bottle to her own, making her look up with a shy smile. Both of them knew that the foundations to their odd friendship had now been laid. They just had to build it up.

* * *

 

The day after his garden conversation with Daphne, Harry woke up with a start as the enticing smells of breakfast drifted up to him, alerting him to how late he’d slept in. Quickly dressing, Harry raced downstairs, praying today would be one of the rare days when Petunia didn’t mind cooking breakfast. When he finally reached the kitchen he was greeted with a sight more surprising than his aunt in the kitchen.

There in front of him, Daphne stood at the cooker, casually turning  French toast over as though it were the most normal thing in the world.

“What are you doing?” Harry asked as he approached the counter where coffee and orange juice stood.

“I thought you’d like to a little lie in, so I made a start on this morning’s work,” Daphne said staking the toast on a plate and placing it in front of Harry with a smile before making her way back to the cooker to plate up her own breakfast.

“Thank you, it’s delicious,” he said after a mouthful. “I didn’t even realise you knew how to cook,” remarked as she sat down next to him.

“To be honest, I can’t really. But I picked up a little watching you and this seemed like the easiest thing to make. Even I can’t really mess up eggs; milk; bread and a little seasoning,” she admitted with a smile.

“Well, thank you. That extra forty minutes was really nice. I owe you,” Harry said with a smile.

“Don’t worry about it,” Daphne said with a dismissive shrug. “We’ve just got the rest of the garden to do today, it shouldn’t take us too long,” she told him.

“How’d you manage all the work? What time did you wake up?” he asked her, frowning.

“I couldn’t sleep,” Daphne replied with a shrug, deliberately avoiding both his eyes and his questions. “I’m going to wash up before they all descend. Would you mind getting the dishes?” She asked, not waiting for a reply before heading upstairs, leaving the very baffled Harry sat at the counter looking after her, wondering what had happened to the pretty brunette to make her suddenly so very helpful. At the sound of heavy footfalls coming down the stairs however Harry knew he didn’t have the luxury to contemplate it at that moment and as began to move around the kitchen preparing the Dursley’s breakfast he decided to think on it all later.

* * *

Unfortunately before Harry could fully contemplate Daphne’s sudden and drastic change in behaviour it was time for her to leave Privet Drive and return home. The day Daphne was due to leave, Harry took charge of every chore that was required for that day, allowing Daphne to pack up and have a peaceful last day in the small Surrey house. When the moment of departure arrived, both stood at the door, unsure of what to say.

“Well… It’s been interesting,” Daphne said remarked as they waited for the portkey her parents had sent her to activate.

“Yeah, it’s been a blast,” Harry said with a sarcastic laugh. “We both know it’s been terrible.”

“The first half was horrible,” she admitted,” But the last half wasn’t too bad. The chores were still terrible, but at least I got to know you a little better,” she told him with a smile. “Thank you, for making me feel welcome from the start, even if I didn’t  realise it at the time. I appreciate it. And I’m sorry I was so difficult to start off with.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he told her. “I knew this was going to be difficult, but I am sorry about how my aunt and uncle treated you while you were here.”

“Yeah, well. I’m still going to go thank them for having me. They may have been horrible people with the manners of monkeys but I was still raised to be polite,” Daphne said with a smile before heading going into the sitting room to talk to the Dursley’s.

“What do you want?” Vernon sneered when he finally spotted her standing in the doorway.

“I’m leaving soon and I just wanted to thank you for having me in your house for the last three weeks,” she told Vernon and Petunia. When the two adults said nothing I response but merely looked back at the TV, Daphne lost what little patience she had and walked forward to turn the TV off, ensuring she had their full attention. “I don’t know what you know about our world, or about purebloods and the war, but the way that you treat you’re poor nephew is absolutely deplorable. Dictators treat their prisoners better than this! That boy has saved your lives and you still treat him like dirt! You really should be ashamed of yourselves,” Daphne told them before storming out the room, pausing in the hallway momentarily when she saw Harry stood in front of the door, a look of utter shock on his face having obviously heard everything she had just said. “You’ll probably be sent our address by the school at some point next week,” she told him as she hadn’t just defended him to his rotten relatives. “I’ll see you in a week. Thank you again for having me,” she told him with a smile before gently moving him out the way of the door and heading outside to catch the Knight Bus home, putting an end to what would go down in history as three of the worst weeks of Daphne’s life.             


	6. Chapter Six

** A Summer Exchange **

Harry and Daphne

Chapter Six.

Harry stumbled as the portkey dropped him off outside Daphne’s family home; Greengrass Gardens. Looking around he realised they were surrounded by valleys on one side and what appeared to be a forest on the other side, neither of which gave him any indication as to where about in the country he was, the only thing he knew was it was beautiful. Looking up at the impressive visage of the manor, Harry nervously swallowed before making his way up to the door where a small house elf was patiently waiting for him.

“Welcome to Greengrass Gardens,” a soft feminine voice said as Harry appeared in the doorway. Looking in he could see Madame Greengrass walking towards him with a warm, welcoming smile on her face. “I’m afraid the girls are out with their father at the moment,” she said as she shook his hand warmly. “But I’ll show you where you’ll be staying and leave you to settle in before dinner. Oh, this is Binky, she’ll be your own personal house-elf while you’re staying here, so if you ever need anything just call her and she’ll be right there,” Madam Greengrass said as she led Harry up the grand sweeping staircase to the first floor.

“Thank you for having me for the next couple of weeks,” Harry said as he followed her along the plush hallway.

“Oh, nonsense, we’re happy to have you,” Madam Greengrass said. “Besides, with all the tales Daphne and Astoria have told us when they come home from school over the years, we couldn’t wait to finally meet you. Plus Daphne has been singing your praises after her three weeks in your home,” she told him as she led them to Harry’s guest room. “Well this is you. I hope you enjoy your time with us Harry,” she said with a smile before turning and leaving Harry to unpack and get settled.

“Does sir need anything?” Binky asked, her words clear, unlike Dobby and Winky.

“No thank you. I think I’ll just unpack and relax a little. I’ll call you if I need anything,” Harry told her with a polite smile, letting out an exhausted sigh when he was finally left alone. Looking around the plush room, with its expensive fittings, Harry couldn’t help but think with slight amusement, ‘Well at least we’re not sharing a room’, before he got to work unpacking his trunk. 

After a couple of hours of relaxing in his room, staring out into the vast gardens of the Greengrass estate, Harry’s solitude was eventually disturbed by the knocking of the door and the arrival of Daphne. “Mother said you’d arrived,” she said when he opened the door for her. “Sorry I wasn’t here to greet you; we’d been visiting Millie, she just got back from her exchange. Anyway, what are you doing up here on your own? Come on, I’ll show you around,” she offered with a smile, leading Harry from the room.

“We’ve only got the two floors, quite modest compared to most family homes. To the far left, that’s mother and father’s rooms. The dower rooms are over there too, but they’re using them as an extended wardrobe at the moment,” Daphne told him, motioning to the left side of the manor, but making no indication that she was going to actually take him to that side of the manor. “On the other side of the staircase is all guest rooms, but they’re slightly smaller than the ones on this side. This is the bathroom for this side, there’s another immediately opposite,” she showed him, indicating to the door opposite them on the hallway.

“Two bathrooms for eight bedrooms. What do you do when you’ve got six guests?” Harry asked, curious, thinking it would be both amusing and a slight let down to que up in the plush hallway in order to use the bathroom.

“The family bedrooms all have en-suites so really it’s really one bathroom for three guest rooms. We rarely have guests stay what with floo powder and apparation so it’s never really been an issue,” she explained to him as she moved them into the right-hand wing. “This is my room if you ever need to find me I’ll usually be in here,” she said opening the door and allowing him inside. “Astoria is just at the opposite end of the little hallway outside.”       

Walking across to the opposite wall, Harry paid little attention to the massive bed on the far wall, or the vanity and desk tucked into opposite corners of the room. He merely walked around the chaise and small sofa, he finally arrived at the other side of the room, where the wall seemed to be replaced by three expansive windows, allowing him a perfect view out over the grounds.

He thought he had a great view from his own room, but the view that Daphne was lucky enough to wake up to was fabulous. From Daphne’s room, he had a clear view over the gardens; the manicured flowerbeds leading down to the small fountain and pond. To the right-hand side there was a miniature maze that he imagined both Daphne and Astoria would have spent hours chasing each other in when they were young and beyond that, the kitchen garden and green houses’ that fed the family throughout the year. And right out in the distance, the edge of a forest that seemed to hug the left side of the estate.  

The grounds were breath taking.

“Come on, I’ll show you the ground floor,” Daphne said, pulling him away from the view and leading him downstairs. Once they reached the foyer she led him to the left side of the manor and began pointing out what room was what. “That’s the formal sitting room, or basically where mother takes the people who visit that she doesn’t like. This is the formal dining room,” she told him, throwing open the doors to a room that encompassed the entire length of the left wing, large sections of wall once again being replaced by vast windows making the room seem much more open, three large chandeliers hanging above the vast table in the centre of the room. “We rarely throw large enough parties to warrant such a room anymore. I think the last time we had enough guests to fill up this table was my parents wedding reception. This is a little entertainment room, just music and games. No I don’t get it either,” she added with a smile when she saw Harry’s confused face as he looked around the small room. “This is the ballroom, again don’t really know why we haven’t got rid of it,” she said with a shrug as they walked through the large room and back into the foyer before heading to the right wing of the manor.

“How long have the Greengrass’ been here?” Harry asked.   

“I want to say since the early 1800’s but I’m not too sure. Astoria could tell you, she’s a wiz with our family history. Okay, the right wing is more family rooms so if you ever need any of us then this is where we’re more likely to be. This is the family dining room; all meals will be in here. This is the sitting room, on most nights we’ll come in here and talk or play games. This is my absolute favourite room, the library,” she told him throwing open the door. With floor to ceiling bookcases surrounding the walls, and with the fire burning gently as it was at that moment, Harry could easily see how Daphne could curl up into one of the over-sized plush chairs and loose herself in a book. The entire room had an incredibly comforting feel to it. “Those doors lead to the sitting room,” Daphne informed him pointing to two doors next to them. “That door leads to father’s study. He’s not here at the moment and while he wants you to feel at home while you’re here, he has asked me to tell you not to go in there without permission. It’s the same rule for all us,” she told him with a smile before walking towards one of the oversized chairs and collapsing into its soft cushions. “So that’s it. What do you think?” she asked him, curious to know what he thought of her home.

“It’s amazing,” Harry told her as he too sat down, practically falling inside the soft cushions. “If I’m brutally honest, I thought you’d live somewhere really extravagant where each member of the family had a completely separate section of the manor to themselves. But this is homely, only on a larger scale,” he admitted, almost looking bashful for his disparaging thoughts.

Daphne laughed, obviously amused with his embarrassment. “Believe it or not, our house is probably in the best condition for its size and age out of all of our classmates. And it’s surprisingly modest. I mean, Pansy’s house had four wings and there’s only three people living there. It’s mental. So, what would you like to do while you’re here with us?” she asked him.

“I don’t really know. What do you and your sister usually do during the summer?” Harry asked.

“Usually we go away. Mother’s family is originally from Belgium so we have a house just outside Brussels and stay there for a couple of weeks,” she told him with a shrug. Before they could discuss the second half of the summer however, Binky the house-elf popped in and announced the lunch was ready, bringing the conversation to an end for the time being.      

 


	7. Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven.

The morning after arriving at Greenhouse Gardens, Harry found himself standing in the doorway to the empty family dining room, wondering where his host family was. He imagined that Daphne and possible Astoria, were both still asleep in bed – he remembered just how difficult Daphne found it to wake up so early to do chores. He did wonder where Madam Greengrass was though, especially given that the night before she reassured him that she was also an early riser and would most likely be in the dining room when he rose.

With a shrug of his shoulders Harry decided to take a walk through the beautiful gardens while he waited for Daphne to wake up and have breakfast. He was had just reached the doors leading to the terrace when the sight outside caught him by surprise. There she was, Madam Greengrass kneeling amongst the flower beds. Still in slight shock at the sight, Harry opened the terrace doors and walked down towards his host. “Good morning Madam Greengrass,” he greeted when he finally reached his host.

“Oh, good morning Harry. Do call me Helaine while you’re here dear,” Madam Greengrass said with a smile as she stood up and dusted herself off. “You’re up very early, I thought I’d have more time before anyone joined me for breakfast,” she remarked, untying the apron she had covering her clothes.

“I’m an early riser. There’s usually a lot to do when I’m home and it’s easier to get it done when my relatives are still asleep,” Harry remarked as they made their way back up to the house.

“Yes, Daphne mentioned that you did a lot around the house for your relatives,” Helaine remarked casually, not revealing exactly how much of Harry’s home life she was privy to.

“She did?” Harry asked, becoming concerned that Daphne had revealed she had practically become a slave for eighteen days.

“Yes, she said that you had some washing and cleaning most days. Oh, and that you cooked dinner while your relatives were at work,” Helaine said as she led the way towards the dining room. “But don’t worry, you’ve got eighteen days of relaxation here, no housework or chores required,” she told him with a smile as they entered the dining room. “Good morning girls.”

“Good morning mother,” Astoria greeted. “Moring Harry,” she added with a smile when she spotted the messy-haired boy.

“Good morning Astoria, Daphne.”

“Where were you this early in the morning,” Daphne asked her classmate.

“Harry woke up early and found me out in the garden,” Helaine answered on his behalf. “You know if your house guest wakes up so early, you might want to do the same. It’s not very proper to have houseguests wandering the house waiting for someone to wake up,” she remarked to her eldest daughter.

“Yes mother,” Daphne replied with a slightly forced smile before looking over to her sister and rolling her eyes, both girls knowing that their mother rose with the sun every morning. “So, what would you like to do today Harry?” Daphne asked once everyone had stated breakfast.

“I’m not sure. What do you usually do during the summer? Other than go to Brussels that is,” he asked.

“We usually go visit friends, do some shopping. I’d occasionally go into the office with father,” Daphne said with a shrug, embarrassed that she didn’t have anything more exciting to offer for Harry’s eighteen days.

Harry didn’t really know what to say. From what Daphne, had said, holidays weren’t very exciting at the Greengrass estate when they weren’t abroad at their second home. Thankfully he was saved from choosing between one boring idea and another by Helaine.

“Well, your Hogwarts letters were delivered early this morning, so I suggest you start by going to Diagon Alley and picking up your new school supplies. You might as well get it out of the way and you can enjoy the rest of your holiday,” Helaine told them with a smile before excusing herself, leaving the three teens to plan exactly when they were going to visit the Alley. An hour later they were headed to the Alley.

* * *

“Tori, stay close please,” Daphne said as she led the way towards the bank at the end of the Alley. “Mother would kill me and bury me under the roses if anything happens to you.”

“No, she wouldn’t Daph,” Astoria said with a shake of her head. “She’d put you under the tulips,” she added with a smile making Daphne mutter ‘great’ under her breath as they ascended the steps of the bank. “Daphne hates tulips,” Astoria explained to Harry as they walked to one of the vacant desks.

“Do you need to get any money out Harry?” Daphne asked. When Harry nodded, she turned back to the goblin, waiting impatiently. “We’ll also need to visit the Potter vault as well.

Making their way to the Greengrass vault was quick and smooth and once the two girls had refilled their purses, they clamoured back into the cart and made the looping, bumpy journey down into the bowls of Gringotts towards the Potter vault. When their journey came to a welcome and abrupt halt all three teens practically leapt from the cart, each of them eager to stop the world spinning around them, much to the amusement of the goblin escorting them. When Harry finally recovered enough to open his vault his two companions couldn’t hold in their gasps of surprise at the sight inside. Piles and piles of gold stretched out from the door as far as they could see and dotted around the outside of the room were trunks and covered canvases. Feeling self-conscience, Harry quickly refilled his money bagged and practically slammed the door to his vault earning him a glare from the goblin. When they finally reached the surface they quickly got to work on getting all their school supplies with both Harry and Daphne offered book suggestions for Astoria upcoming year.

While Harry was trying on new robes later in the day, Astoria took the opportunity to talk to her sister about their guests’ sizable vault. “Did you know that the Potters were _that_ rich?” she asked in a whisper.

“No idea what so ever!” Daphne replied looking over at Harry as he inspected the price tag on the robes he was trying on and frowning when he read the number on the ticket. “I don’t think even he knows how much is in there,” she remarked to Astoria.

“How can he not know?” she asked.

“Remember, he didn’t grow up in the wizarding world, he grew up with muggles. And I think this was the first time he’s visited Gringotts without a professor or the Weasley’s so I doubt he’s had any meetings with the goblins either,” Daphne pointed out. “Are you done?” she asked Harry as he approached, just as Astoria was about to ask about the vault again.

“Yeah, all done. Where to next?” Harry asked with a small smile. He had to admit that he was enjoying himself, he’d never really been to Diagon Alley with adult supervision and without his life being threatened and he was enjoying the company of the two Greengrass sisters.

“I overheard that the Weasley twins had opened up a shop, we could go see what it’s like?” Astoria suggested with a smile. When the two older teens nodded in agreement she beamed at them both, “Great! There shop is as the other side of the Alley, lets go!”

When they reached the Weasley’s new shop, the bright colours, loud noises and swarming crowds greeted them when they eventually got through the door. The shop was packed and Harry could see the twins were in their element, showing off their brilliance to the mesmerised crowd while the constant ring of the tills sounded in the background. They were clearly in their element and all three teens enjoyed themselves trying out what products they could reach, although none of them were brave enough to join the line to pay, they each had a list of things they wanted to buy later and Astoria was determined to get their father to buy her a pygmy puff.

By the time, they got back to Greengrass Gardens it was close to six o’clock and they all quickly dumped their purchases in their respective rooms before joining Helaine in the dining room. The conversation around the table was lively and bubbly as the three Greengrass ladies and Harry enjoyed a relaxed and delicious meal when a sudden commotion outside caught their attention. Looking up towards the door, Harry caught a glimpse of a man before it was completely obscured by Daphne and Astoria as they surrounded the man, much to the amusement of Helaine. “Girls, girls! Give your father the chance to sit down,” she told them with a smile. “How are you dear?” she greeted her husband with a kiss. “We weren’t expecting you back until tomorrow.”

“The last meeting was cancelled, everything was sorted beforehand,” Master Greengrass informed his wife with a smile as he sat down at the head of the table. “You must be Harry? It’s good to meet you at last. My apologies for not being here to greet, business is a demanding mistress,” he remarked as an elf appeared and placed a plate before him.

“That’s okay, sir,” Harry said with a polite smile.

“Please, call me William. So, how are you finding your time here so far? I hope my girls are taking good care of you,” William remarked with a pointed look towards his daughters, but the severity of his gaze was lessened with his warm smile.

“Father!” “Daddy!” Daphne and Astoria shouted, much to everyone’s amusement.

“I know you’ll be taking wonderful care of our guest. So, what have you been up to since you’ve been here? How long have you been here even?” he asked, tucking into his food, prompting everyone else to carry on eating.

“I arrived yesterday afternoon,” Harry told him. “We spent the day in Diagon Alley today, that’s pretty much all we’ve done so far,” he informed him.

“I’ve not missed much then. Have you been shown around the estate?” William asked.

“Yes, Daphne showed me around yesterday. The manor is wonderful and the grounds are beautiful,” Harry complimented his host.

“Thank you, but I can’t take credit for the grounds, that’s all the hard work of Helaine,” William said, shooting his wife a loving look. The rest of the diner passed quickly, with the Greengrass’ catching up on what they’d all missed in each other’s lives while William had been away for the last week, although Daphne remained rather quiet, something her father picked up on. So, when dinner finally ended and everyone made their way into the sitting room and library, William pulled his eldest to the side and asked what had her so preoccupied.

“When we went to Diagon Alley, Harry took a lot of interest in how much his robes would cost. And he didn’t spend an awful amount of money while we were out,” Daphne told him.

“That’s not unusual. Not everyone has money to burn Daphne,” William pointed out to his daughter.

“But that’s the thing. We went to Gringotts and caught a glimpse inside his vault. Yes, I know, we shouldn’t have looked,” she added when she saw her father’s disapproving look. “But Harry isn’t poor. He’s as far from poor as the Malfoy’s are from being modest. I don’t think anyone’s ever actually told him just how much he’s worth.”

“So, what are you going to do about it my dear?” William finally asked his daughter, knowing that she wouldn’t have told him her concerns unless she had some sort of plan. Unfortunately, he didn’t realise just how much he was involved in his daughters’ plan for their house guest.

“I want you to reintroduce him to the wizarding world and show him just what it means to be a Potter.”


	8. Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight.

When Harry woke on his fifth morning at Greengrass Gardens, the sun was shining bright and there wasn’t a cloud to be seen in the sky. The weather was so pleasant that after breakfast Harry decided it was about time he spent some time in the beautiful gardens. When he finally reached the terrace after changing into some old clothes he’s brought from the Dursley’s, he picked up a pair of gardening gloves left next to the bed of Dahlia’s and got to work removing deadheads and gently removing excess petals from some of the remaining heads, which meant that he was soon joined by dozens of bees as they moved in to feed.

He had just moved onto one of the rose bed when Helaine joined him. “Harry! What on earth are you doing? You’re a guest you shouldn’t be doing house work,” she said she set her basket of tools down and put her own gloves on.

“I don’t mind doing the gardening,” Harry told her with a smile as he dusted off his knees when he stood to greet his host. “I always get left alone to do the gardening at the Dursley’s,” he informed her with a sad smile.

“Oh, well. I’m glad of the company if you’d like to carry on helping me. Daphne mentioned that you spent a lot of your time in the gardens, is it a hobby of yours?” Helaine asked as she knelt down opposite Harry and began clearing up the base of the plants while Harry continued to cut off deadheads.

“Not really. I just like spending time outside really. Not one for sitting around and doing nothing,” Harry told her, leaving out the real reason he did the gardening while at home. He knew that Daphne hadn’t told her parents what his life was like when she returned and he was in no hurry to shine a light on his miserable home life. “I take it gardening is a passion of yours though?” Harry asked after a couple of minutes of working silently.

“Oh yes! Once upon a time I was going to make a career out of Herbology,” she told him with a soft smile. “One of my oldest friends was going to become a potion master and we were going to open an apothecary together. But life and marriage got in the way of things,” she said sadly.

“Why didn’t you just open the apothecary once you were married?” Harry asked curious as to why getting married meant she couldn’t work.

Helaine couldn’t help but laugh at the innocence of Harry’s question. “Oh, my dear sweet boy, it just isn’t done like that. You begin courting, get married and have a child. That’s just the way things are. My grandmother did it, my mother did it, I did it and in a couple of years Daphne and Astoria will do it,” she told him with a slight shake of her head. When she looked up and noticed his shocked expression she smiled softly at him. “It’s nothing to be that surprised about sweetie, it’s just life that’s all.”

“So, you think Daphne and Astoria are just going to be housewives and mothers then?” Harry asked, almost dreading the answer.

“Yes, more than likely. I suppose they might both have jobs for a short while before getting married but I imagine once they are, they won’t continue working,” Helaine said before smiling at Harry and moving off to another section of the garden. For the rest of the morning the two worked silently side by side, peacefully moving from one flower bed to another. But Harry’s brain was far from peaceful as he tried to comprehend how a woman like Helaine Greengrass could honestly believe her daughters were destined to be nothing but housewives.

* * *

Later that night as Harry made his way back to his room lost in thought as he played over his earlier conversation with Helaine while in the gardens. He always knew that purebloods were the wizarding worlds equivalent of the muggle aristocracy, but he never thought they would be so … antiquated. For despite both Daphne and Astoria’s brilliant grades, Helaine still believed her daughters were unlikely to amount to anything more than trophy wives. The concept was surprisingly upsetting to him.

He had just reached the top of the stairs when a soft voice caught his attention. Curious, Harry followed the sound which lead him to the door leading to Astoria’s bedroom. Seeing the door was only slightly closed, Harry paused just outside the door and listened to what he quickly realised was Daphne coming to the end of a story.

“…its wings opened up, stretching from one side of the courtyard to the other. With a roar and mighty push of its wings, it took off flying up and up into the inky darkness of night. The last anyone saw of it was its flickering shadow against the moon,” Daphne said in a hushed, slightly gravelly voice. Realising the story had ended Harry made his way down the hall to his room, a small smile on his face, the small snippet of the story he’d just overheard reminding him of adventures in his third year with Buckbeak. He’d been in his room only 15 minutes when a knock sounded on his door and Daphne poked her head in. “You know you didn’t have to stand outside. You could have come inside and listened to the story,” she told him with a smile as she moved into the room and sat down at the foot of the bed.

“I didn’t want to interrupt,” Harry said, “Besides, I missed the beginning of the story. I liked the ending though,” he told her with a smile.

“Thanks. You’re the inspiration behind that particular story actually,” she told him with a smile.

“I’m flattered but the last time I checked I didn’t have wings as wide as a courtyard,” Harry said with an amused smile making her chuckle lightly.

“No, I know that. I’ve seen you topless remember,” Daphne said with a grin and a wink. “Actually, I took it from third year. When that Hippogriff escaped – Malfoy wouldn’t stop whining about that by the way – there were all sorts of rumours going around, one was about how you used the hippogriff to help your godfather escape. One rumour said that you used it to take Granger on a romantic flight across the Highlands,” she informed him. “Anyway, I took the flight of the hippogriff and made it slightly more little sister friendly. It’s actually one of her favourite stories, I’ve been telling her it since she was 10. Changing little bits of it to keep her interested obviously.”

“Wait, you make it up differently every time you tell her? How often do you tell her?” Harry asked.

“Not that often, usually just when we’re home in the holidays. And I have to change it, I can never remember all the stories I’ve told her word for word,” Daphne told him with a shrug.

“Is this something that you want to do then? Write stories professionally?” Harry asked her as they both got more comfortable on the bed.

“Yeah I suppose I would like to do that. No idea how good I’d be, but Tori always seems to enjoy them so I might do it one-day,” Daphne said with a shrug. “So, how are you finding it here so far? Vastly different from your home life,” she asked after a couple of minutes of awkward silence.

“It’s very different but I really like it here. You’ve all been really wonderful and welcoming,” Harry told her with a warm smile before frowning. “When you came back from the Dursley’s, what did you tell your parents about your stay with us?”

“Why do you ask?” Daphne asked seriously, sitting up straighter.

“When I was helping your mother in the garden this morning, she said that you mentioned that I spent a lot of time outside doing the gardening, but she didn’t sound like she knew why I was doing it. She thought it was just a hobby or something.”

“What’s your point Harry? Are you asking me if told my parents that you’re basically a house elf while at home and that while I was there I eventually became one too?” she asked him, somewhat sharply. When she saw Harry nod embarrassingly, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “They don’t know about the way I was treated by your relatives or about the chores that I ended up doing with you. And I have no intention of telling them, because it’s no concern of theirs.”

“You don’t think they have the right to know how you were treated?” Harry asked with a frown.

“No. What do you think they would do? Father will yell and get angry and mother will cry and say it’s no way to treat an heiress. Then they’ll get in touch with the school, chew Dumbledore out for coming up with such a hair brained scheme and that would be the end of the summer exchange,” she pointed out. When she saw that he was still frowning she leant across the bed and rested her hand above his. “If it bothers’ you, then by all means tell them the truth about what your home life is really like. But I honestly didn’t think it was my place to say anything to them,” she told him with a sad smile before bidding him good night and moving to go back to her room.

For the next couple of days Harry thought over whether or not it was a good idea to tell Helaine and William about Daphne’s treatment at his house, but in the end, he decided against it. Obviously, her stay with the Dursley’s hadn’t negatively affected Daphne and he knew she was right when it came to the possibility that her parents’ complaints to Dumbledore might end the summer exchange problem prematurely, which would be counter-productive to its objective.

When William called him into his office one morning however, he did wonder if Daphne had told him the truth about the Dursley’s. After all, why else would William invite him into his office and then raise such strong privacy wards that Harry could _feel_ the magic as it washed over them.


	9. Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine.

Looking across the desk and watching William as he shuffled papers around, Harry tried to calm his erratic heart as he went over his last couple of days at Greengrass Gardens and tried to remember anything he might have said or done that would warrant a one on one meeting with his host. “There’s no reason to look so worried Harry, you’re not in any trouble,” William reassured him with a warm smile.

Letting out a small chuckle of embarrassment, “Sorry, it rather feels like I’m in the teachers office for sneaking out after curfew,” Harry admitted with a smile making William chuckle lightly.

“Well rest assured, you can wonder around the manor any time, day or night. Our home is your home after all,” William reassured with a smile. “I merely wanted to ask you a couple of questions that I hope you don’t find too intrusive,” he told the younger wizard, smiling gently when Harry nodded. “What do you know about your family? The Potter’s I mean, not the relatives you live with.”

Whatever Harry was expecting to be asked, that wasn’t it. He looked over at William and seeing that he was patiently waiting for an answer to his question, Harry thought hard about what he knew of the Potter’s, frowning when he couldn’t think of anything other than his parent’s names and the fact they both had died in Godric’s Hollow. After he told William these two things he looked down at his twisting hands in shame. “I’ve never even really thought much about them. I mean, I saw what they looked like in my first year because of the Mirror of Erised, but the headmaster warned me about dwelling on it too much, but beyond they’ve never really crossed my mind,” he admitted, his voice quiet.

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of Harry. Given the circumstances of your upbringing it’s perfectly understandable,” William reassured the younger boy. “Do you think it’s something you’d be interested in learning? Discovering who and where you’re from?”

Harry thought about it. He thought about the Weasley’s, the Malfoy’s, the Greengrass’. They could trace their family back generations, give their future children the names of their ancestors and loved family members. They could tell stories passed down through the generations. He wanted stories. He wanted to be able to name his future children after ancestor’s who had done good in the world.

He wanted to know his family.

“I hope you don’t mind, but I’ve taken the liberty of finding out a couple of things as I had hoped you would be interested in discovering your history. I’ve only managed a brief search, but I can tell you that your grandparents are Fleamont and Euphemia Potter. And your great-grandfather was Henry Potter and he sat on the Wizengamot, the last of family to do so,” William told Harry as he handed over a couple of sheets of paper with the information on he’d managed to find. “Our library is quite extensive so you should be able to find out more relatively easily. Hopefully by the end you’ll have better knowledge of your family.”

Grabbing the paper, Harry thanked William before making his way out the office. He was just about to open the door when it suddenly occurred to him that this was a rather random conversation to be having. “Sir, if you don’t mind me asking, what made you ask me this? No one has ever asked me what I knew about the Potter’s or even if I wanted to know anything about them,” he told the older man with a slight frown.

“It was actually Daphne’s suggestion. She merely asked me to give you a good starting point for your search,” William revealed.

Feeling more confused than when he entered, Harry merely nodded, leaving the office and making his way to the library to begin his search for the family he’d never known.

* * *

 

 “Hello Harry,” Astoria greeted the young wizard when she walked into the library. “Mind if I join you?” she asked motioning to the seat opposite him.

“Of course, not it would be nice to have the company,” Harry told her with a smile, moving his books and sheets to make space for the youngest Greengrass.

After about five minutes of companionable silence Astoria looked up to see Harry glaring down at the parchment in front of him. “Are you okay there Harry? That parchment seems to be making to a little angry,” she asked politely, hoping to ease some of the tension he was clearly feeling with some humour.

“Oh, I’m just trying to research the Potter’s history. Your father suggested that I look into it,” Harry remarked. “I’ve only really got three names so far, I don’t really know where to start looking to be honest.” He admitted with an embarrassed smile.

“Well that names do you have, maybe I could help? I’ve always enjoyed looking into family histories,” Astoria offered with a smile, pushing her book to one side to lean over and look at Harry’s parchments.

“I know that my grandparents were called Fleamont and Euphemia and that my great-grandfather was Henry Potter and that he sat on the Wizengamot. That’s what your father has told me and I’ve found out that Henry sat on the Wizengamot from 1913 to 1921. I’ve also found out that another ancestor called Ralston Potter had a seat between 1612 and 1652,” Harry revealed with a shrug, not thinking much about what he’d found out so far.

“Okay, well daddy and Daphne can find out more about their positions on the Wizengamot when they go into session next week. You could even ask them if you can go along too, if you ever want to take up a seat for the family again it’ll give you a good idea of what they do,” Astoria said. “Start with your grandparents, if you know the year they were born then you can look at Hogwarts year books. From there you can get the year they graduate and most yearbooks will give some indication of what a person does after they leave school. That’ll give you the jobs they did. Then look for marriage announcements which will give you both sets of grandparents’ names,” Astoria told him, before standing and moving to one of the far side bookcases leaving a slightly confused but somewhat impressed Harry watching after her.

“How do you know to look for this stuff?” he asked her when she re-joined him at the table carrying a book that on the Sacred Twenty-Eight.

“I enjoyed learning about my family history during tutoring when I was little and it kind of carried over into history overall. Professor Binns is still boring though,” Astoria told him with a smile handing over the book. “Start with the Sacred Twenty-Eight. I can’t remember if the Potter’s are actually part of the Twenty-Eight but even if you’re not, then it will tell what links you have to each of the other families. You can branch out from there,” Astoria told him with a smile sitting opposite him.

“Thank you, Astoria,” Harry said with a smile pulling the book closer and opening it up, eager to find out all he could about his family from within.

* * *

 

It took Harry two days to of non-stop reading before he finally worked his way through every connection the Sacred Twenty-Eight had to his family. He couldn’t trace his family tree back to Merlin like some other pureblood families claimed could, but he knew enough. James and Lily; Fleamont and Euphemia; Henry and Trisha; Dorea and Charlus; Hardwin and Iolanthe. For the first time in his life, he felt like he knew his family. The next question he faced was: Now what?

“What do you want to do, now that you’ve got this information Harry?” William asked one he’d finished reading through the file Harry had created, looking thoroughly impressed with what the young boy had discovered.

“Well, I’ve sent a letter to Gringotts requesting a meeting to go over the Potter family vaults but I’m not seeing them until I return home. Astoria mentioned that Daphne sometimes accompanies you to Wizengamot meetings. If it’s possible, I’d like to join you as well for the next meeting. It’ll give me a good idea of what I would be doing once I apply to join upon graduating Hogwarts,” Harry told him with a small, polite smile. After a brief moment of contemplation, William nodded ever so slightly, indicating his agreement. “Thank you, sir.”

When Harry stepped into the chamber he was surprised by how different it was to the courtroom he’d been in during his misuse of magic hearing. The walls were still the imposing black stone, but were broken up by M.o.M banners hanging down at strategic intervals, in colours that reminded Harry of Auror’s robes. Coupled with the vast chandelier hanging high above them, the room didn’t have the same intimidating feel to it that Harry imagined it to.

“What do you think?” Daphne asked in a whisper as the two teens were lead over to the Greengrass box by William.

“It’s a lot nicer than the courtrooms,” Harry said with an amused smile, chuckling slightly at the wide-eyed look of shock his response got from Daphne. “I’ll tell you later,” he said as they all took their seats, William sitting slightly in front of the Harry and Daphne.

“This session of the Wizengamot is called to order,” a speaker at the far end of the room shouted, the rest of the rooms occupants falling into silence as the meeting began. For the next hour and half, members discussed everything from the Ministry’s ties to the Muggle government, to the lack of donations received at St. Mungo’s and whether the paper airplane method of delivery interdepartmental memos was efficient enough. By the end of the day, Harry was surprised to find himself mentally exhausted. Yet he felt a sort of calmness later that night that he hadn’t experienced since the first meeting of Dumbledore’s Army. Like what he was doing mattered, even though he knew he couldn’t contribute anything substantial just yet. He looked forward to the day when what his actions and words could actually make a difference.


	10. Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten.

The last two weeks of Harry's stay with the Greengrass family were filled with trips to the Wizengamot with William; family research with Astoria, not to mention getting to know Daphne better – both in a personal capacity as well as discovering exactly what she wanted to do in life.

"Do you want to go into the Wizengamot?" Harry asked as they relaxed onto the terrace, overlooking the beautiful gardens.

"Of course, why wouldn't I? We can't just leave doddering old men in charge of the country, nothing would ever be accomplished," Daphne told him with a laugh.

"So, do you get to keep the Greengrass seat then? Even when you get married?" Harry asked curiously.

"Yep. When it became obvious that they weren't going to have a son, father ensured that the family seat and power wouldn't become absorbed by whatever family Astoria and I decided to marry into," Daphne told him with a proud smile.

"The Greengrass sisters ruling the world? Sounds terrifying," Harry joked, laughing when Daphne hit his arm in mock anger at his words. "Okay then, what would you do? When you're running the country?" he asked.

"Over hall the education system. There would be a post-Hogwarts level education for those that wanted it. Something akin to an apprenticeship, but not as secretive. I'd also introduce a class within the early years of Hogwarts that teaches everyone about the old ways, such as Ostara and Winterfylleþ. Even some purebloods don't know about most of the old ways and we can't let tradition die out," Daphne told him. "And if I were ever lucky enough to have children of my own, I'd take them into the chamber with me. Show them from an early age that every voice counts, no matter how loud or small it may be, it counts. And I'd make those doddering old fools look the future in the eyes when they try to introduce archaic and backward laws," she added, the slight note of anger in her tone of voice clear to Harry's ears.

"You're starting the changes early then," Harry remarked with a smile.

"Well, we have to start somewhere. And if it's not me introducing these changes, then who will? Seats don't open up that often to let new people in and most pureblood girls are perfectly content to be wives and mothers. If I want to see change then I'm going to have to push for it myself," she told him.

Hearing Daphne talk about pureblood wives and mothers reminded Harry of the conversation he had with Helaine all those weeks ago. Hearing how Daphne was going to change their world and knowing how passionate Astoria was about history, he couldn't help but wonder how their mother could think they'd amount to nothing more than wives and mothers. It seemed like it would be such a waste.

* * *

Harry thought of all that he had learnt while he was staying with the Greengrass'. All he'd discovered about the daughters and the father. What he'd discussed with the mother and he realised that since his rather shocking conversation with Helaine all those mornings ago, whether he'd meant to or not, he'd been avoiding her.

He knew her to be a loving; caring; supportive mother. Had seen it with his own eyes and he needed to know once and for all, if she truly felt that her daughters would be nothing than trophy and house wives. And he found the perfect opportunity one morning in the gardens. "Good morning Mrs Greengrass," Harry said as he approached her knelt amongst the flowerbeds.

"Harry! You know I've told you to call me Helaine," she greeted him with a warm smile.

"I've not really spoken with you in so long, it doesn't seem right to call you by your first name," Harry told her with an embarrassed smile. "I'm sorry that I've not spoken with you much recently."

"No need to apologise dear. I know William has been showing you the ropes of the Wizengamot with Daphne and Astoria has been helping you with tracing your family history. How's that going? Found anything interesting?" she asked with a warm smile.

"My grandfather invented the Sleekeazy's hair potion. Somewhat ironic given the Potter men's hair is," Harry told her, running a hand through his own messy locks, making them look worse.

"Just think of how grateful your grandmother might have been," Helaine said with a light chuckle. "I certainly know my girls use bottles of the stuff during the warmer months."

"I would offer a discount, but by all accounts, my grandfather sold the company when he retired," Harry told her with a smile. "When I first arrived and the first time I helped you with the garden, you said that Daphne and Astoria were destined to be wives and mothers. Do you really think that is all they'll amount to?" he asked.

"Oh, of course not! I believe that my girls can do whatever they want to, if they put their minds to it. Daphne has so many plans for the country, I can't imagine anything or anyone getting in her way!" Helaine remarked with a faint, fond chuckle. "And I've lost count of all the discoveries Astoria has made about our family. Just when you think there's nothing left to find, she takes a twig from the family tree and turns it into a branch!"

"Knowing all this, how could you think they'd be housewives for some pureblood son?" he asked, confused.

"You have to understand, when I was growing up and when I was a young woman, it was completely normal and acceptable to give up any job or career in order to focus on ones' children. Every second was precious and not to be missed," Helaine told him, before sitting back on the grass next to the flowerbed she'd been tending, motioning for Harry to join her. "When William and I first married, we struggled terribly to fall pregnant. Every month we thought we'd made it and every month we were heartbroken. Daphne and Astoria are our little miracles, the idea of leaving them for hours on end for a job that I didn't need was unthinkable."

"I'm sorry for all you've been through," Harry said. "I never meant to insult or imply you weren't supportive."

"No need to apologise my dear. I know that it all sounds old fashioned to young ears, Merlin knows Astoria has told me so dozens of times," she told him, amused. "But rest assured that both of my girls know they can do whatever their hearts desire and I'll support them wholeheartedly," she reassured Harry with a warm smile. "Now, unless William has got plans to abscond with you to the library with talk of creature legislation, I'd love to have some company while I work on the viola's and pansy's," she told him, the two working companionably together for the remainder of the afternoon, both parties feeling lighter from all that had been revealed.

* * *

"Cheers!" "Cheers!" "Cheers!"

The family dining room might have only been filled with five people, but the atmosphere was one of happiness and merriment as they celebrated Harry's stay with the Greengrass'.

"Well I hope you've had an enjoyable stay with us," William remarked as they all tucked into their meal. "Hopefully we've not terrified you into never visiting again."

Harry couldn't help but laugh slightly along with Daphne and Astoria at Williams exuberance. "You've no chance of that," he told him with a smile.

"You know you're always welcome here Harry," Helaine told Harry with a smile. "You'll always find friends and a warm welcome with us."

"Thank you, all of you, for such a warm welcome. You've taken me in and made me feel like a member of your family. You've all shown and taught me so much and I truly appreciate it," Harry told them all, hoping they all knew just how thankful and grateful he was by their warm welcome.

He knew that given how his relatives had treated Daphne, that his own experience of the summer exchange might have been much different. But they'd welcomed him into their home; let him glimpse at their lives; and now he was leaving as a friend, having arrived as a stranger.

And it was the best summer holiday he's ever had.


	11. Announcement!

Hi folks,

 

Just a quick message to say that the next instalment of A Summer Exchange is live!

This summer it's all about Ron and Pansy.

Check it out and I hope you enjoy it.


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